


The Hunger Within

by familymatters



Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Genre: Biting, Different flavors for different flames, Flame as food, Gen, How do kids speak?, I should know this, Loss of Control, Vampire Tsuna, Vampires, but like for flames
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-02
Updated: 2020-03-15
Packaged: 2020-10-05 22:10:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20496131
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/familymatters/pseuds/familymatters
Summary: When Tsuna’s flames were sealed, a dark pit of hunger grew to fill its place. Only feasting on the flames of others could fill its place.





	1. First meeting

**Author's Note:**

> Nine year old Hibari meets a seven year old Tsuna at night. An encounter more dangerous and life changing than he expected.

The moon was high in the sky with only a few clouds accompanying it. The only people outside were those of the shady sort, police officers, and a 9 year old Hibari Kyoya. Young children shouldn’t be outside but Kyoya didn’t consider himself to be one of those herbivores. He didn’t have to hold himself to what herbivores could or could not do because he was a carnivore.

That’s why it was strange that a small herbivore was sitting on the ground slumped against a wall.

As Kyoya got closer he saw the herbivore begin to stir. He watched the herbivore start to stand up with almost drunk motions. He was stumbling over towards Kyoya and Kyoya was fine with that because at least he wasn’t running away from his beating.

“Little herbivores shouldn’t be indulging themselves in alcohol.” He warned.

The small herbivore didn’t stop walking when he got closer to Kyoya, he just raised his arms and with surprising strength, pushed Kyoya down with a glazed look in his dark orange eyes. Kyoya struggled to push him off and found that he couldn’t. Small hands had Kyoya’s own pinned to either side of him.

“Herbivore get off me before I bite you to death.”

The herbivores gaze slowly turned to his neck. “Bite?” He said slowly as if testing out the words. He licked his lips and leaned closer to sniff Kyoya and gave a hum of happiness when he found what he wanted.

“Thank you for the meal.” He murmured and bit down on Kyoya’s neck. Kyoya jolted and fought harder to get the herbivore off him but the herbivore wouldn’t budge.

With how close the herbivore was Kyoya could hear his swallows and with each swallow he could feel something being drained out of him even though the bite didn’t pierce his skin. Kyoya could feel himself grow weaker and with his weakening state he felt the herbivore loosen his hold. He yanked his hands free, grabbed onto the herbivores shoulder and gave one hard  _ push  _ with his remaining strength.

The herbivore, no, the carnivore was forced away from Kyoya, his teeth dragging along the base of his neck as he was pushed away. Kyoya saw a trail of flickering purple fire leaking out the corner of his mouth before he licked it up making sure to get every drop.

The omnivore's eyes were lighter than they were before. They were a warm shade of brown that went along with his fluffy brown hair. He looked down at Kyoya in confusion before it morphed into horror and he jumped back.

“H-hibari-senpai!” He squeaked and slapped his hands over his mouth.

“Baby carnivore.” Kyoya growled as he forced himself to sit up. He was exhausted and could barely hold himself up.

The baby carnivore’s hands left his face and his hands hovered over Kyoya as if searching for a way to help. Kyoya growled and the baby carnivore stopped that useless hovering.

“I am so sorry. I was so hungry I didn’t mean to do it again.” He sounded horrified and close to tears.

“Name.”

“Sawada Tsunayoshi.” He replied quickly then gave a small smile that twisted into a grimace as he stood up. “Call me Tsuna.” 

Kyoya tried to push himself onto shaky legs they gave up on him and he slumped back onto the floor.

Tsuna squeaked and rushed over to Kyoya to help him on his feet. Kyoya didn’t complain about being helped up and he couldn’t help but lean on Tsuna as Tsuna led him somewhere. 

He was drifting in and out of consciousness and leaning heavily on Tsuna that he barely heard him say,

“We’re at my house Hibari-Senpai. Please don’t tell Mama about this.”

“Hn”

“Tsu-kun where have you been?”

“I was out playing with a friend and he’s really tired now. Can he stay over?”

“As long as it’s okay with his parents.”

“They’re not home, they don’t care.” Kyoya murmured too tired to care about giving too much information.

The next thing he knew he was being tucked into bed by a woman with brown hair past her shoulders and loving brown eyes. Kyoya closed his eyes again and didn’t wake until morning.

He woke up in the morning feeling comfortable but still tired. The something that was drained out of him wasn’t back yet and it left him feeling off.

There was a warm weight pressed against his side and an arm across his chest. He turned his head and to get a face full of fluffy brown hair. Tsuna’s face was pressed against his arm and Kyoya slowly tried to tug his arm away. He didn’t want to get bit again, he didn’t think he had enough energy to fend off another attack.

Light brown eyes open up slowly, blinking out the haze of sleep. He looked at Kyoya in confusion for a moment then his eyes widened and he pushed himself back then squeaked while tumbling off the bed.

Kyoya dragged himself to the edge of the bed and looked at Tsuna who was rubbing his arm which Kyoya guessed he must have fell on.

“You act different than yesterday baby carnivore.”

“Hibari-senpai.” He was all he said before tears welled up in his eyes and he started to cry. Tears rolled down his face as he let out sobs that made it sound like everything was going wrong in his life.

It couldn’t have hurt that much. Kyoya reached over and pat him on the head. “No tears little one.”

“I’m so sorry I didn’t want it to happen again. I don’t know how to stop it.”

“Stop what? Falling off the bed?”

“No not that. The  _ hunger _ . I eat food but it does nothing to fill up that hunger. It’s only pushed back when I bite someone and  _ take _ something from them.”

“What do you take?”

“I know it’s not blood and there are different colors that have their own taste.” He had a dreamy look on his face as he was remembering the flavor. “Your color was purple and it was light and fluffy but not too sweet.” Hibari felt proud at hearing that.

The smile faded and was replaced with a frown. “When I… When I eat it people feel tired and they lose energy. Are you okay Hibari-senpai, do you feel tired?”

Kyoya crawled off the bed and stood in front of Tsuna. “Baby carnivore, fight me.”

“What?”

“Get up and fight. I won’t say it again.”

Tsuna hurriedly stood up, wiping the tears away. He adopted an unstable fighting stance that he probably saw on tv and threw a slow sloppy punch which Kyoya dodged.

Hibari didn’t have his tonfas near him so he swung his fist at the baby carnivores arm and was surprised when he easily knocked him down, he was weaker than yesterday. The baby carnivore stood up and Kyoya hit him in the same spot. After one more hit he stayed on the floor and looked up at Kyoya.

“I’m back to full strength-” That was a necessary lie to put the baby carnivore at ease. “and I’m stronger than you.” 

“Why did you have to hit me?” Tsuna whimpered clutching his bruised arm

“I’m stronger than you so I can stop you if you go too far. Don’t cry about it.”

“Boys come down for breakfast.” The baby carnivores mother called out from downstairs.

Kyoya pat Tsuna’s head again. “You are a baby carnivore and babies have little control. You will grow, get control, and I’ll watch over you.”

Tsuna smiled, it was small and hesitant but happy. “Thank you Hibari-senpai.”

Kyoya decided then that he would help this baby carnivore learn to control himself. He couldn’t have him running around town biting whoever he wanted. Kyoya would just have to stick with him until he learned.


	2. Red flames

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tsuna goes to Italy to see his father. He gets lost along the way, nothing goes as planned, and he cries a lot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to all those who commented and gave Kudos! I didn't expect this story to be liked so much.

Tsuna held the phone in his hand and dialed the number. He couldn’t keep going like this and- he licked his lips- he was so very ** _hungry_ ** **.**

There was something in people that, when he ate it, it made him less hungry. It wasn’t blood because it didn’t have that metallic taste of blood. It was something entirely different and he wanted that, he hungered for it.

It started when his father came to visit, after that old man poked his forehead. When Tsuna woke up his only though was that he was hungry and he bit his father. Whatever it was he got held off the hunger for almost a month, but he didn’t want to keep going through his days hungry. He loved his mother's cooking but it didn't help the hunger. 

He bit Hibari-senpai two weeks ago and already the gnawing edge of hunger was coming back. 

His father picked up on the third ring.

“_ Hello? _”

“Papa, I really want to visit you in Italy. I miss you.”

“_ Sorry Tuna-fish but papa is very busy with work.” _

“But daaaad you didn’t get to stay for long and you brought your boss. I want a family day.”

“_ Tuna-fish you have to understand that I want to come home.” _

“Papa-“

“_ I want to come but I can’t leave yet.” _Tsuna could tell that his Papa wasn’t taking him seriously and he couldn’t have that. He had to get to where his Papa was.

“Papa. You took something important from me, are you going to deny me this one thing?”

His father was silent for a while then “_ Let me clear up my schedule and I’ll buy some tickets for you and your mom to come. Put her on so I can talk to her.” _

He couldn’t help but laugh, it was easier than he thought it would be. “MAMA, Papa WANTS TO TALK TO YOU.” He shouted.

He heard his mother coming from the living room and he handed the phone to her when she was near. He didn’t bother to stay and listen to the conversation he already got what he wanted. He went in the living room and picked up the remote to change the channel, he settled on one that was playing a movie about vampires and was drawn in.

He heard a laugh and his mother’s voice in a higher pitch saying ‘yes’ over and over.

His mother ran into the living room and he turned to look at her. “Tsu-kun we’re going to see papa in Italy!” His mother squealed.

“When are we going mama?”

“Next week! We’ll finally get to have some family time together!”

  


***********

Tsuna didn’t wait long to tell Hibari he was going to Italy especially since Hibari came to Tsuna’s house almost every day for dinner.

They were both seated in Tsuna’s room after dinner when Tsuna brought it up. They were both seated on the floor, Hibari was making Tsuna work on his summer homework and the words were starting to make no sense, Tsuna needed a break from it.

“Mama and I are going to see Papa in Italy.” Tsuna informed him.

Hibari looked up at him and frowned. “When and for how long?”

“In six days, I don’t know how long we’re staying. ”

They’ve only known each other for two weeks so Hibari didn’t know all of Tsuna’s quirks yet, but he could tell that something was off about this trip.

He narrowed his eyes at Tsuna. “Why are you going?”

“My Papa has an orange energy that makes me less hungry for longer. I just want to go a longer time without being hungry.” He didn’t mean to sound pleading but he did. He was pleading his only friend to let him do this and to not worry. 

Hibari stared at Tsuna in silence looking for something making Tsuna feel tense. After a moment Hibari nodded. “Be safe. Don’t get caught.”

Hibari tapped the papers in front of them. “Now finish your work and stop getting distracted.”

  


***********

Italy was amazing from what little he got to see of it, but Tsuna hasn’t found the time to get to his father. 

They arrived in Italy late and settled in the house Iemitsu lived in. Tsuna went right to bed tired from that almost twenty hour flight. He woke up in the morning still feeling tired when his mother told him his father had something to clear up before they could meet up.

With the hunger came an irritation that he never had before and hearing that he couldn’t meet his father irritated him. He was scowling all morning and every little thing annoyed him. He hated feeling like this but he couldn’t help it. His mother decided that taking him on a walk would lift his mood and that’s when things went wrong. His mother was right and the walk did lift his mood. He spotted a colorful butterfly and only left his mother's side for a few seconds to get a closer look. When he turned back to show her what he found, she was gone. 

Tsuna knew he should stay still in case his mother came back to this spot but something in him was drawing him in a different direction.

He could feel the hunger creeping up on him like a wild animal. If he waited any longer it would start chewing on his insides like a ravenous dog. Right now it felt as if it was lightly clawing at his stomach begging for something to eat.

He sniffed the air and among the scent of people he caught the scent of something that made the hunger in him growl in pleasure.

He followed the scent deep in an alley and spotted a boy his age facing off against two men. 

The boy was facing Tsuna’s direction and had silver hair and a scowl on his face but Tsuna couldn’t make out his eyes from that distance. Tsuna stepped closer and sniffed the air. It smelled like garbage but under that scent was something delicious and spicy.

The man said something to the boy and then a ring on his hand lit in yellow flames and the next thing Tsuna knew he was jumping on the man’s back and sunk his teeth in his neck.

The man screamed but Tsuna could only focus on the fruity taste. It wasn’t sweet like the fruits he loved, instead it had a muted dull taste. Tsuna kept eating hoping there would be sweetness eventually but also he was so _ hungry. _ He ate not noticing the man falling to the ground. Tsuna kept on eating until suddenly there was nothing left to eat. Tsuna lifted his head up and the other man was pale with shock and fear.

“_ Mostro _.” The man choked out and he ran. Tsuna couldn’t tell what the word meant but he knew it wasn’t good.

Tsuna looked at the boy and, oh he was close, his eyes were emerald green and were currently shining in awe.

The boy started speaking in rapid Italian and Tsuna only looked at him in confusion.

“I don’t understand. I don’t speak Italian.”

Surprisingly the boy switched to Japanese. “That was so cool. You took down that man and every time the other got near you, you stopped him.”

Tsuna didn't remember doing that. He only remembered eating. He looked down at the man and his eyes were closed and his chest wasn’t moving. With trembling hands Tsuna touched the man's neck, right where Tsuna’s teeth marks were, and couldn't feel a pulse.

“He’s dead.” Tsuna said simply feeling numb. He didn’t know he could kill people if he ate too much. He almost ate a lot from Hibari senpai, what if that had killed him. But Hibari was strong, he could stop him, that’s what he said. But this man wasn’t strong and he couldn’t stop Tsuna.

Tsuna moved closer to the boy for comfort and instinctively sniffed him. His scent was spicy like curry and that was the scent that led Tsuna to this alley and Tsuna knew that this boy was the original target of his hunger. Tsuna started to cry, great big tears accompanied by gasping sobs. What if he had killed him instead? 

The boy’s hands hovered near Tsuna and finally settled on his shoulder. “Please don’t cry. He was a very bad man. He was going to take me somewhere I didn’t want to go and you saved me.”

Tsuna’s sobs died down and now it was only hiccups left. He wiped his eyes. “I saved you?” He mumbled.

“Yes you did and I’m very happy about that.” It didn’t make Tsuna feel a whole lot better but the last of his tears stopped.

“Let’s go before the one who ran comes with backup.” The boy grabbed Tsuna’s hand and dragged him out of the alley.

They ran into a crowd, clutching each others hand tighter to not get lost. They stopped at a fountain, one he passed when he was walking with his mother, and flopped down near it, trying to catch their breath.

“I’m Sawada Tsunayoshi. Please call me Tsuna.” 

“My name is Gokudera Hayato. Hayato is fine.” The boy said when he stopped breathing hard.

Hayato’s eyes were shining and he leaned closer to Tsuna. “You bit that guy and drank from him. Was it blood? Are you a vampire?” 

Tsuna wrinkled his nose. “Eww, I don’t drink blood.”

“Then what was it?”

“It was… Did you see that thing that came out of the man’s ring? It was yellow.”

“Yes I saw it.”

“That’s what I ate. I was hungry but once I ate from him I wasn’t anymore.”

“What did it taste like?”

“It was fruity. I haven’t had one that color before. I’ve had purple and orange and those two taste different.” Tsuna found it easy to talk about this with Hayato. Maybe it was because Hayato was so enthusiastic about Tsuna’s condition, or maybe it was because Hayato saw Tsuna eat from the man until there was no life left and it didn’t phase him.

Hayato thrust his arm in front of Tsuna. “Do you want to know what I taste like?”

“What?” Tsuna was stunned. Didn’t Hayato just see Tsuna kill a man?

“You’re not hungry right?”

“Right” Tsuna said slowly, still not understanding his point.

“Then you can just taste without taking too much since you’re full. I want to see what happens up close and how you eat some type of energy even though. This will help you find out more too. Taste it.”

“TSUNA.” He heard called out, saving him from caving to Hayato’s reasoning. 

Tsuna looked around for the source of the voice.

“TSUNA.” He heard again. Tsuna looked in the direction of the voice and spotted a tall blond man running towards him.

Tsuna turned towards Hayato. “They don’t know about this.” He gestured towards himself. “Please don’t tell them.”

Tsuna stood up and waved at his Papa. His mother was close behind him. Iemitsu scooped Tsuna up in a hug when he got close.

“We were so worried about you? Where did you go?”

“I went to look at a statue and got lost. My new friend Hayato stayed with me.” Tsuna hoped Hayato would back him up. He didn’t want to have to tell his parents what happened. He didn’t want them to know about the hunger in him and the man he just killed.

Iemitsu started speaking to the boy in Italian and he couldn’t understand one word. Tsuna squirmed until Iemitsu let him down and Tsuna ran to his mother.

“I’m sorry for wandering off.”

“Just don’t do it again. You had me worried.” She scolded while hugging him.

In the arms of his mother he felt safe and he started to cry again, silently this time, for the person he killed. He sniffled and wiped away his tears before it could soak his mother’s shirt.

Tsuna left his mother and went to Hayato. “I will be in Italy for a week. Let’s figure this out.” Tsuna told him the address of their house and left with his parents.

**********

Hayato showed up at the house of the interesting boy he met two days later. It wasn’t hard slipping past the guards at his house without them noticing him. He should tell his father about that one day but it wouldn’t be any time soon, he liked this freedom. Being home was uncomfortable.

Tsuna looked cautious and unsure when he opened the door. There were dark circles starting to appear under his eyes but he still let Hayato inside and took him up to his room.

The sat on the floor side by side, and Hayato presented his arm once again to Tsuna.

“So. Taste it.” He said almost vibrating in anticipation. Tsuna was fascinating. Hayato loved reading about UMA’s. Tsuna wasn’t an animal but he was something more than a regular human. Hayato was going to discover what this boy was and how his condition worked. The only thing that came close were stories about vampires but Tsuna didn’t drink blood.

Tsuna still looked cautious. “Are you sure about this?”

“I am absolutely sure.” Would it hurt? What would come out if not blood? How would Hayato feel? What did it taste like? How did Tsuna feel when he ate it? He wanted his questions answered.

Tsuna grasped his arm in both hands and sighed in resignation. “Okay.”

He brought Hayato’s arm to his mouth and Hayato saw flickering orange fangs on Tsuna’s canines before he bit down. He flinched when he saw the fangs go in his skin but it only felt hot in that area. He saw something red well up that at first he thought was blood but it was flickering just like Tsuna’s fangs and there were other colors in it. It was mainly red but there were also small streaks of yellow, purple, green, and blue.

Tsuna only took a mouthful of that energy before moving Hayato’s arm away. He didn’t feel much different but maybe that was because Tsuna didn’t take much.

“Do you feel tired?”

“I don’t feel any different. What did it taste like?”

Tsuna tapped a finger to his lips while looking up. “It was mainly spicy like mom’s curry with other flavors that I can't quite describe.”

“When you were about to bite me it looked like you had fangs but they were orange, almost like fire.”

He started to feel his canines with his finger. “It doesn’t feel any different.” He said in confusion.

“Maybe it only appears when you are about to bite someone to help you get that energy.”

Tsuna nodded in understanding. “So I get fangs when I’m about to bite someone. Hibari-senpai will be interested in this.”

“Who is this Hibari?” 

Tsuna looked up at him with a fond smile. “He’s my senpai at school and the first person that found out about me mostly because I bit him.”

Hayato was interested in that. Tsuna has already bitten a person and he was helping him. Since this person was still alive there should be some data on what taking the energy makes a person feel. 

“How did he feel after you bit him?”

Tsuna’s hands were clenched in his lap. “He was tired and couldn’t stand on his own but he had enough strength to stop me from taking too much. He pushed me away and it stopped me.” 

“Were you still hungry after that?”

“Only a little but it was controllable.”

“Do you know how much you have to take in until you’re full?”

Tsuna grasped his arm, his hands were trembling. “Hayato let’s not talk about this. Let’s do something else.” Tsuna looked up at him an Hayato saw tears in his eyes. He didn’t understand what was wrong.

“Why what’s wrong? Don’t you want to understand your condition.”

“I could have killed him if I took too much.” Tsuna wore a pained expression as tears rolled down his face.

Hayato didn’t know what to say. He couldn’t tell Tsuna he wouldn't have done that because two days ago he did just that to a man.

“You said he stopped you right?"

“Yes he did?”

“Then he can do it again. Just don't put yourself in a position that you would get too hungry. You need more people to eat from.”

“But I don’t have anyone else except Hibari-senpai that knows back home.”

“Let this Hibari help you find someone with a good flavor and you should get to know them or you’ll end up attacking them.”

“I can’t just go up to a person and say ‘hey you smell delicious let me eat you.’ That won’t go well.”

Hayato shrugged. “Why not? You know you don’t want to hurt them so get to know them and you won’t hurt them.”

Tsuna opened his mouth trying to find a response and then closed it. Hayato’s argument was not wrong and it couldn’t hurt to try to get to know someone. Hayato found no reason for Tsuna to refuse this plan.

Tsuna nodded. “I’ll try it.”

“Good. While you do that, I will try to find out what the energy you eat is.”

Tsuna gave a small smile that held all his gratefulness in it. “Thank you so much for helping me Hayato!”

Hayato blushed and returned the smile. It was nice being around someone who wasn’t hanging around him just so their family can gain favor with his father. He liked being around Tsuna and thinking of Tsuna’s strange condition took his mind off of thinking about his piano teacher who stopped coming by.


	3. Sky flames

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tsuna plays hide and seek with his father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Life has been hard and I'm trying to get back into writing again. I split the other chapter hoping to make this part longer but it never happened.

  
Today was finally a day where Tsuna, his Mama, and his Papa were able to just stay in and be by themselves. Even though Tsuna was feeling bad about eating this energy from people, he still wanted that orange energy his Papa had. His mouth watered just thinking of those flavors that tasted like everything good but mostly delicious baked goods.

Tsuna stepped up to his father and tugged his shirt to get his attention. One hand was clutching a blanket he had over his shoulder. “Papa, let’s play a game.”

He smiled as innocent as he could. He hoped it didn’t come off as the hungry predator like smile Hibari told him he wore sometimes. He wasn’t hungry, he just wanted a taste.

“What game do you want to play Tuna-fishie?”

Tsuna pretended to think but he already had a game in mind. “Let’s play vampire!”

“How do you play that game?”

“I play the vampire and you’re my victim. You hide and I hunt.” Tsuna declared. He knew he wasn’t being too subtle about what he wanted but that orange energy was right there and his father didn’t know about his condition.

Tsuna tried not to smile. Hibari told him his smile looked like a predator when he caught the scent of something he wanted. He really wanted that orange energy and without Hibari here to check him, he was sure he would have a hungry grin on his face. So he tried not to smile but, inside, he wore a wide predatory grin, and some of that must have leaked to show on his face because his father looked worried and maybe a little bit frightened.

His mother laughed and nudged his father’s shoulder. “Go play with him. He’s started reading about vampires recently, he thinks they’re cool.”

Tsuna let the grin slip on his face and threw the blanket fully over his shoulders, spreading his arms out and holding each end like a cape. “Let’s play Papa.” 

His dad looked at his mom and she gently pushed him off the chair. His dad left the room to go hide turning back once to look at Tsuna.

“Don’t peek Tsuna.” He called out before he left.

Tsuna giggled and covered his eyes. “I won’t!” Tsuna counted slowly to twenty already knowing where his father hid by the scent of his energy but just letting the game drag on. He walked by his father's hiding spot in the closet many times making sure his footsteps were loud enough to be heard as he dug around the room.

“Papa’s not under the bed. I wonder where he could be.” Tsuna mused out loud. He crept quietly toward the closet and, in one swift motion, opened the door. He saw his father jump a little and Tsuna could not tell why that made him happy but it made him crave that energy even more. 

Tsuna tackled his father and in one swift motion, bit him on the arm. The energy was even better than he remembered. It was warm and sweet like his favorite cake. The warmth of the energy slid down his throat and seemed to fill his whole body, more than any other energy did, making him feel more comfortable than he has been in a while. He wanted more, but he remembered what he talked about with Hayato and Hibari also told him not to trust adults with this.

Tsuna let go and stepped back from his father. This energy was a treat and he should treat it like a treat and save it for special occasions.

“I’m done with this game now. I’m going to my room.“ He turned around and walked off leaving his father to rub his arm with a confused and slightly fearful expression.

********************

His last few days in Italy were spent with his parents seeing the sights around the area and with Hayato. Hayato would come over every day and they would sit and talk until Tsuna convinced him to play. 

Tsuna liked having someone like Hayato know about him. He was still a little hesitant to talk about his condition but the more theories Hayato came up with the more he wanted to talk if only to dissuade his more absurd theories.

There was one theory that had Tsuna as an alien child sent to earth to taste the quality of the earth people and if they were good enough, the rest of his people would come down and feast. Tsuna could not sleep that night and spent the night worrying that he was an alien spy. 

Hayato apologizing and then throwing out even more inane theories didn’t help and so Tsuna had to talk.

His stay was short and soon he was at the airport waving bye to his father and new friend. He would miss Italy but he was anxious to get back home. He had a lot to talk about with Hibari.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments give me life.


	4. Rain flames

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takeshi has been watching Tsuna and Hibari's friendship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the kudos and comments.

Takeshi has been watching Sawada and Hibari even long after the novelty of their friendship wore off among the other children. The sudden and strong friendship between Hibari and Sawada was interesting to him and he didn’t know why. 

People wanted to forget but Takeshi also remembered when Sawada used to be the center of attention. The children would follow him around and hang on his every word, teachers would praise him, and he was always one of the first to answer a question. 

Sawada used to smile a lot but then something happened and he came in one day and the children that used to hang around him started treating him differently. He couldn’t answer questions, he tripped over air, and the children would laugh at him. His fall from the top was met with such disgust and hatred  _ because _ he was at the top. They always had their eye on him looking for something and, when they couldn't find that, he was cast aside. Takeshi didn’t want that to happen to him so he tried to fit in.

He learned how to make them like him with baseball which he actually enjoyed. When they saw he was good at something they also liked, suddenly people wanted to be around him but, he couldn’t forget how they couldn’t accept him before and so he kept himself distant but friendly.

Takeshi had friends, but he wasn’t close to them, he didn’t find comfort in them. They didn’t know him, the real him, or they would be terrified of him. There was a darkness in him that he hid because he learned from a young age that he couldn’t fit in if he didn’t act how the other children acted. He remembered when they used to murmur among themselves that there was something about him that was unsettling, something that scared them. 

The part interested in destruction, death, and violence. The part fascinated by his father’s swords and knives and the clean cuts they made in fish and men. He locked those parts of himself away and put on a smile to put them at ease even when he didn’t feel like it.

Takeshi watched Sawada and Hibari because they were themselves around each other. Hibari was violent and the children were afraid of his violent nature that could, at any moment, be turned on them. Sawada was not afraid of that violence even when it was turned towards him. He stuck by Hibari’s side when he could and Hibari would seek him out during breaks. Sawada watched as Hibari disciplined students without a hint of fear and Hibari was more gentle with Sawada than he was with anyone else.

He wanted someone that would accept all of him like they did with each other.

***********

Kyoya watched Yamamoto Takeshi.

Tsuna’s eyes were drawn to him when he stepped in the room. He would take a long sniff so he could catch the scent and then he would stare. Tsuna would look dazed and the more he saw Yamamoto and caught his scent, the hungrier he would look.

And so Hibari watched Yamamoto to make sure he was safe.

  
  


**********

Takeshi was on the playground at recess when he was approached by Sawada Tsunayoshi. Standing behind Sawada was Hibari Kyoya. He wasn’t exactly Tsuna’s bodyguard because even though he would beat up those that bullied Tsuna, he would sometimes let it happen and observe as Tsuna fought back. 

“Can I talk to you?” Tsuna asked while looking up at him with worried shifting eyes and he tugged nervously on the sleeve of his own shirt. 

How should he act? Should he feel scared? With Hibari standing near by, Takeshi couldn’t refuse even if he wanted to, which he didn’t because this was interesting. What did Sawada want?

He let Sawada pull him aside, back into the school and in an empty classroom.

Hibari stood with his back against the door, keeping his eye on Takeshi. There wasn’t any room to escape except the window.

Tsuna looked down at his hand and fiddled with his fingers. “So, um, Yamamoto-san, there’s something I need to ask you.”

“What is it Sawada-san?”

Sawada looked up at hearing his name and wrinkled his nose. “Don’t call me Sawada, call me Tsuna.”

“Okay. Tsuna, what do you want with me?”

“Um you see well.” Tsuna glanced back at Hibari and Hibari gestured towards Yamamoto.

Tsuna took a deep breath and let it go slowly. “Can you help me with a problem?”

Takeshi knew better than to say yes to anything without knowing what it was but he hasn’t found anything interesting other than baseball. Maybe Tsuna had something he would like. “Yes. Tell me what it is.”

Tsuna looked surprised and he looked back at Hibari again who only raised an eyebrow.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to tell you before you agree? You should think more on this.”

“I’m sure. Tell me.”

Tsuna furrowed his brow. Takeshi wanted to laugh. He looked so confused. 

Tsuna rubbed his cheek in thought. “I need you to help me with a problem I'm having.”

Takeshi heard an irritated sound from Hibari and glanced at him only to see him coming towards them with a scowl. He stepped in front of Takeshi and even though Takeshi was taller than him, he felt intimidated. “Your scent bothers his control herbivore. Change it or join.”

“My scent?” Takeshi sniffed himself. He only got the scent of the soap he used this morning and sweat from the game he was pulled from. He didn’t think he smelled bad.

Tsuna frowned at Hibari. “I wasn’t going to say it like that. You’re too harsh Senpai.”

“You were taking too long Baby Carnivore. Deal with this quickly.”

Tsuna turned an apologetic look towards him. “It’s not your scent, well it is your scent but you can’t smell it.” That was not any less confusing.

“It’s a sort of special scent from an energy you have. It smells really really good.” His eyes almost seemed to darken at those words. He leaned in closer to Takeshi and took a few sniffs. He nodded with a satisfied hum. “Really good.”

Hibari smacked him in the back of the head. “Control yourself.” He snapped. 

Tsuna recoiled from Takeshi with a horrified look. “I’m sorry Yamamoto-San.”

The sniffing was weird but it didn’t bother him. “That’s alright but you still didn’t tell me what you needed.”

“Oh! Um, I’m different that other people and I need something else to survive.” He looked reluctant to say those words.

Takeshi laughed. “Like a vampire?” 

Tsuna grimaced. “Yes like a vampire. But I don’t need blood.” 

Takeshi was just about to ask if he needed blood. But if Tsuna didn’t need blood, what did he need?

“I eat energy? It’s an energy of some sort. Everyone has a different color and the energies have their own delicious flavor.” His eyes definitely darkened that time. 

“Control.” Hibari growled and Tsuna took a deep breath. Takeshi was beginning to think that Hibari wasn’t there to protect Tsuna but to protect others from Tsuna.

“Do you need my energy?” Takeshi asked because why not.

Tsuna looked stunned. “Yes but you shouldn’t just give it to me without asking what would happen if I take some!”

“Then what will happen?”

“You’ll get tired if I take a lot and you will die if I take all.”

“So it’s like what happens in vampire stories?”

“Yes?” Tsuna answered slowly, not wanting to admit to being a Vampire but Takeshi was already referring to Tsuna as a vampire to himself. He didn’t know if it was true or not but this was an interesting conversation and it would be fun if it was true.

Takeshi held out his arm. “Then bite me.”

“What! Wait. Are you sure? I don’t really know how to stop myself from taking too much.”

Takeshi shrugged he wasn’t trying to die but Tsuna was more interesting than anyone else and he wanted to keep getting to know him. If it meant giving a little energy, it was no problem. “If you have friends that can stop you from going too far it will be fine.”

Tsuna showed a small sad smile as he grabbed his arm. “You make this sound so easy.” Tsuna murmured.

Tsuna brought Takeshi’s arm closer to his mouth and Takeshi was fascinated by the flickering orange fangs on Tsuna’s canines and he was even more fascinated by the way they dug into his arm. Takeshi flinched but it didn’t really hurt. Tsuna only lifted his mouth for a second to look at where he bit before his eyes darkened even more and he started to eat. Takeshi’s skin wasn’t broken but he knew something was bitten into with the way the surprisingly cool blue liquid leaked out of twin holes in his arm.

The sensation of having this energy drawn from him felt like when he had to go to the doctor to get his blood drawn. It was unpleasant but he got used to it. A few moments in Takeshi started to feel himself begin to get tired. The energy was being drained from his arm and with it went the energy to stay awake. He glanced at Hibari with droopy eyes and he caught his eye. Hibari immediately grabbed Tsuna’s collar and pulled him away from Takeshi. Takeshi was tugged along as Tsuna was still holding on to him.

Takeshi heard a low growl from Tsuna and Hibari hit him in the back of the head with a Tonfa that he pulled from somewhere. “Control baby carnivore.”

Tsuna shook his head and when he looked up at Takeshi his eyes were lighter and filled with a new energy. 

He held onto Takeshi’s arm showing the same Takeshi would have himself when he looked in the mirror. A little sad and scared of what he was. “Sorry about that. I’m still being taught control.”

“That’s okay.” He yawned and rubbed his eyes.

Tsuna looked at him with worry. “We’ll walk you home after school. You’ll feel tired for a while and I don’t want you going home alone. Unless you have someone to walk with?”

“No there’s no one.” Takeshi’s dad or mom couldn’t come get him anymore ever since mom got sick. He didn’t want them to worry so he told them he had friends to walk home with. 

He always walked alone. 

Takeshi had never felt the need to invite any of those he called friend over and he didn’t want to spend time with them outside of school because school was school and his home was safe. It would be the first time anyone would come to his home, not just to eat at the restaurant, but just to walk with him.

“I’ll wait for you.” 

Tsuna gave him a bright smile and then Hibari grabbed Tsuna’s arm and tugged him to the door. “I won’t allow you to be late to class.”

Tsuna turned back and waved at Takeshi. “See you later!”

Later that day at the gate Takeshi waited for them and he couldn’t help but smile when Tsuna ran up to him with Hibari following close behind.

******************

His mother died a month later and, even though he was hovering between being friends with Tsuna and Hibari and hanging out with the kids he called his ‘friends’, Tsuna and Hibari were the only ones who came to the funeral and hovered near him and stayed with him to make sure he was alright. He snapped at Tsuna a few times but Tsuna never took it to heart. He picked fights with Hibari that he knew he couldn’t win and he smiled for everyone else and he was breaking inside and letting his new friends help build him back up again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave a comment on your thoughts.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Growing Up Growing Fangs](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23562910) by [prettyboysylveon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/prettyboysylveon/pseuds/prettyboysylveon)


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